After hearing the latest news from Lawrence, Kan., you can be sure that Ben Howland and the UCLA men’s basketball team breathed a huge sigh of relief.
On Friday, the NCAA announced that Kansas freshman guard Josh Selby would be ineligible to play for the Jayhawks until Dec. 18, which rules him out for UCLA’s tilt at Kansas’ Allen Fieldhouse on Dec. 2.
Selby was the center of an NCAA investigation into his dealings with Robert Frazier, who Selby’s family said was a longtime friend and mentor. Frazier also serves as a business manager for NBA star Carmelo Anthony.
The ruling comes as one of the more lenient in recent memory by the NCAA when it comes to improper benefits. Little more than a week ago, Kentucky freshman Enes Kanter was ruled permanently ineligible, while Mississippi State sophomore Renardo Sidney, who was once recruited by Howland, was held out for the entirety of his freshman year and must miss the first nine games of this season.
Not having to game-plan for Selby, a McDonald’s All-American and the No. 1-ranked player in his class by Rivals.com, will surely be a plus for Howland and UCLA in one of its biggest non-conference games of the year.
But it won’t get that much easier for the Bruins. Though the No. 7 Jayhawks lost Sherron Collins, Xavier Henry and Cole Aldrich to the NBA, they still return a bevy of key role players, including the Morris twins – Markieff and Marcus – two players key in Kansas’ 73-61 win at Pauley Pavilion last year.
Selby will still have a chance to show Pac-10 fans why he’s been so highly touted. Ironically enough, his first game for Kansas will be against USC on Dec. 18 at Allen Fieldhouse, and his second will be at California’s Haas Pavilion four days later.